Do American's believe in the death penalty?

Question

I have asked the question about pedifilia. I have received two answers defending the criminal act. American's do not really believe in an absolute death penality because it differs from state to state and usually takes years to execute. Saddam Hussien was tried and executed rather fast by our standards.
Death penalty only applies when rehab is not an option. There soud be no rehab loophole in sex crimes. If you do it and get caught you are immediatly executed.

Answer 1

I was pro-death penalty for a long time, but I have changed my stance over the years, for several reasons:

1. By far the most compelling is this: Sometimes the legal system gets it wrong. Look at all the people who have been released after years of imprisonment because they were exonerated by DNA evidence. Unfortunately, DNA evidence is not available in most cases. No matter how rare it is, the government should not risk executing one single innocent person.

Really, that should be reason enough for most people. If you need more, read on:

2. Because of the extra expense of prosecuting a DP case and the appeals process (which is necessary - see reason #1), it costs taxpayers MUCH more to execute prisoners than to imprison them for life.

3. The deterrent effect is questionable at best. Violent crime rates are actually higher in death penalty states. This may seem counterintuitive, and there are many theories about why this is (Ted Bundy saw it as a challenge, so he chose Florida – the most active execution state at the time – to carry out his final murder spree). Personally, I think it has to do with the hypocrisy of taking a stand against murder…by killing people. The government becomes the bad parent who says, ‘do as I say, not as I do.’

4. There’s also an argument to be made that death is too good for the worst of our criminals. Let them wake up and go to bed every day of their lives in a prison cell, and think about the freedom they DON’T have, until they rot of old age. When Ted Bundy was finally arrested in 1978, he told the police officer, “I wish you had killed me.”

5. The U.S. government is supposed to be secular, but for those who invoke Christian law in this debate, you can find arguments both for AND against the death penalty in the Bible. For example, Matthew 5:38-39 insists that violence shall not beget violence. James 4:12 says that God is the only one who can take a life in the name of justice. Leviticus 19:18 warns against vengeance (which, really, is what the death penalty amounts to). In John 8:7, Jesus himself says, "let he who is without sin cast the first stone."

Answer 2

You're asking a very loaded question. There are many facets to make up a decision regarding whether you support the death penalty or not.

Do I believe in the Death Penalty - yes. I believe, even twenty years ago my answer may have been different. There wasn't DNA evidence; although there were forensic scientists they had none of the tools available to them as there are today.

I believe very strongly if a person is a convicted murderer, pedophile, rapist (I could go on) then punishment should fit the crime.

I think as a judicial system we do take way too much time allowing so many appeals. I understand the need to have appeals, but seriously, someone like Jeffrey Dahmer? Did he really need to have any appeals process? He didn't offer his victims the chance to plead their cases.

All these people who sit on death row; what is the purpose? So we can continue to provide them with an education, free of charge to them, (so they can further tie up the appeals process) offer them three solid meals a day - what's the purpose?

You ask if American's believe in the death penalty. I can't speak for all American's - I can only speak for myself. But justice should be served. I'm fortunate enough, at this stage in my life, to have never been a victim of a serious crime - but what about all those innocent people?

What about the men who broke into the, I think they were from Connecticut, house of those people. Raped both the man's daughters and his wife, made his wife go to the ATM and take out money, beat him nearly half to death - and then killed all of the women in the family. Do these sub-human creatures deserve to sit and rot in jail?

I personally don't think so. They should be excuted once they are found guilty.

I agree as well...sex offenders do not deserve rehabilitation! I personally don't believe you can stop the feelings you have and I believe as a sex offender you will go on to perpetrate more crimes.

God bless all the victims of any type of crime out there!

Answer 3

Some Americans support the death penalty, some do not. Many who don't support the death penalty believe it's always wrong to kill, and they're wrong -- DEAD WRONG. Anyone who takes that stance is basically saying that a criminal who kills someone, rapes someone, disfigures someone, or sexually abuses a child has more of a right to life than their victim, whose life is at the very least traumatized (or, at the very most, ended). That's completely backwards. They believe such people should be rewarded by being put in a place where they get a roof over their heads, three square meals a day (often better than the food served to our troops in forward areas), free cable, free Internet access, free weight-training equipment, and free clothing -- all provided at the expense of the American taxpayer. Did you know if capital punishment were mandatory for all convicted murderers and the sentence were carried out within a year of conviction the Federal Government would save enough money on the costs of incarceration to feed all the hungry or starving children in this country?

Here's a list of crimes for which the death penalty should be mandatory:

-- Killing a law enforcement officer in the line of duty (whether the killer knew he/she was a cop or not)
-- Premeditated murder
-- An adult having sex with a child under age 15

Here's a list of crimes where the death penalty should be an option:

-- Second-degree murder
-- Rape
-- Maiming/disfiguring/torturing a person

Answer 4

Good Question, I am going to star it!
Unfortunately we have a lot of (different than my) opinions on this subject and it is a complicated answer.
# 1 if a person is guilty beyond the shadow of doubt, and has confessed to the crime, {MY OPINION} take them out and shoot them immediately, don't waste taxpayers money.
# 2 In cases that guilt is proved through the courts, and no confession exist {MY OPINION} keep it the same process as it is now with the Lengthy appeals, and humane execution.
# 3 In rare cases it has been proved that some innocent people have been convicted and spent time in prison, {MY OPINION} # 2 will give those people a chance, once this has been proved the state should make amends to those people monetarily reimbursing all lost wages, including any possible overt time, raises, and promotions they would have been entitled to .

Answer 5

A significant number of men were actually convicted of rape on the testimony of the victims. Later they were exonerated with DNA evidence. If a death penalty were in place, these men might be dead. A nightmare scenario.

Here are a few of the people wrongfully convicted of rape, where the victim misidentified them, and exonerated with DNA, from the top of the alphabet: (source below)

Habib Wahir Abdal (Buffalo, NY)
Marvin Anderson (Virginia)
Herman Atkins (California)
Chester Bauer (Montana)
Gene Bibbins (Louisiana)
Donte Booker (Ohio)
Marc Bravo (California)
Johnny Briscoe (Missouri)
Dale Brison (Pennsylvania)
Dennis Brown (Louisiana)
Harold Buntin (Indiana)
AB Butler (Texas)
Kevin Byrd (Texas)

And the list goes on.


As for speeding up the process, of the 124 people freed from death row when found to be wrongfully convicted, over 50 had already served more than a decade. Speeding up the process will guarantee the exectution of innocent people.

Answer 6

People in prisons have their own culture, as hard as it may be, it is a culture.
The human race has a way of adapting to their habitat, Prisoners can get sex, drugs, entertainment, it all varies from institution to institution.
I believe in the death penalty, I also do not believe in life in prison, if you get life in prison then ZAP your gone. This will thin out the number of people going to jail and help save our tax dollars and use the extra money to rehab non hardened criminals.

Answer 7

Well, different Americans believe different things. I, for one, am completely opposed to the death penalty under any circumstances. Third world countries execute people. Civilized countries do not. Considering the amount of people on death row that have been exonerated by DNA evidence the past 10 years, I find it scary that we still allow it. One innocent person executed is too many.

Answer 8

I was antideath penalty til I started working in a state prison after about 6 months I was in favor of lining several chairs up and frying them in groups. Some people in prison made a mistake and won't be back but some are sick and twisted people who need culled from the herd.

Answer 9

I'll pass.

The guy who's only crime is he's 3 years older than his girlfriend shouldn't be put to death. The guy who didn't call the next day shouldn't be put to death. No one should die because daddy's little girl is too afraid to tell papa she gave her cherry away.

Given today's legal system, the punishment should fit the crime, and if it doesn't, it should be too lenient.

Answer 10

I firmly believe in the death penalty! Why should we crowd our jails so these cons can learn more and more how to become worse than they already are. Our tax dollars should go towards more schools than jails!